


Daffodils

by Coffeebookboy



Category: Hannibal (TV), Hannibal Lecter Series - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Hannibal Lecter Loves Will Graham, M/M, mention of animal abuse, s1 or s2 undecided, will has only an inkling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-04-07
Packaged: 2019-11-29 03:37:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18217673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Coffeebookboy/pseuds/Coffeebookboy
Summary: Springtime has just begun. And so has something else. It's cute.





	1. Daffodils

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to write about dogs in the sun.

There was a new dog in the pack. So far everyone was responding well, happy to have a new sister. The new addition in question was an Irish border collie. At least that was Will's best guess. He hopped out of bed quicker than usual at the sound of whining. She was at the door, obediently waiting without scratching. Already trained, good news for him. Especially considering the fact that she was old. She acted like a dog who was at least 10 or 11 years old, a sweet elderly lady. She had trouble keeping up with the rest of the pack when they went for walks, but that didn't stop her from trying. He still hadn't named her, but he had a few ideas. He felt his sleepiness fade a little bit as he met her eyes.

 

"Okay girl, let's go outside. Let me put on some pants first." He hesitated.

 

"Maybe just a coat..." He chuckled to himself as the dogs swarmed him eagerly. He was already so close to the door, there was no escape now. He slipped on his boots he'd left by the door and pulled on the ratty trenchcoat hanging next to him. It had been the dog walking coat for a long time, years even, but it served its purpose perfectly well. It wasn't even odd to feel the coat bunch up his t-shirt sleeves and brush his bare legs. He braced himself for the cold and opened his door.

 

"Ah ah!" The pack halted, waiting for the latest lady to head out first, hesitantly, sniffing the air. Then he lowered his hand and they all rushed out around him, nearly knocking him over. He grinned a moment and closed the door behind them, flopping down onto his porch bench. He noticed quickly that it wasn't as cold as he'd expected. Spring, he thought, had sprung early. The thought gave him mixed feelings. Those thoughts quickly dissipated as he watched the collie barrel through some daffodils that certainly had not been there last night. He'd forgotten there were even daffodils in his yard.

 

"Hm. Nice color, girl. You look pretty." She didn't seem to hear him, but she panted happily in the sunshine." It had been a week since he'd taken her home. Already she'd adjusted to the house and the yard. His only concern now was adapting her to his touch. She would often flinch away if he moved too quickly. It made him sad. To know that someone had hurt her, likely a man.

 

He was pulled back to reality by the sound of car tires crackling through broken branches down the road, headed his direction. In pulled a familiar Bentley, recently waxed by the looks of it. He cleared his throat and returned his gaze to the dog in the daffodils. She hadn't heard the car, further evidence that her hearing was gone, but she immediately noticed the tall figure emerging from the pricey metal box and her body language changed. She visibly shrank closer to the ground. In contrast, all the other dogs rushed the visitor, expecting treats. Will didn't need to look up to know who it was. He closed his eyes, listening to the birds chirping through the trees instead. Soon enough, the stairs of the porch creaked and the pitter patter of dog feet neared.

 

"Good morning."

 

Will looked up and replied with a nod and a smile.

 

"New addition to the family?"

 

"Yeah. She's an old gal. Good behavior." The dogs dispersed and regrouped with her as if they'd known who he was referring to, trampling the flowers.

 

Hannibal Lecter had a certain sense of entitlement when it came to visiting Will. All manners and tact were set aside. He never called ahead.

 

"What brings you here on a Saturday morning, Doctor?" Will watched him with wary eyes, curiousity brimming. Hannibal must've left his house before the sun had risen in order to make the hour and a half drive. Hannibal smiled, evidently pleased with himself before he could answer the question. Will watched, appreciating the rarity of that expression. A slip of the mask. It felt special.

 

"I wanted to see you. I had no other plans and I hoped you had none either. Lucky for me to find you're home."

 

"You could've called."

 

"I knew you wouldn't have been awake yet. We all need our rest."

 

There was an empty space of comfortable silence. Neither man felt they needed to fill it. Will watched the dogs and Hannibal watched Will. Both appreciating a certain pleasant aesthetic. It was difficult for Will to not feel self-conscious. He knew he must look ruffled and it was warm, so the coat was a bit too stifling over his sleeping clothes. He wished he'd put on pants.

 

"I'm thinking... Quinn."

 

Hannibal made a soft sound that implied that he wanted clarification.

 

"For the border collie. She has an Irish look to her. Black and White. Fluffy ears. I think the name Quinn would suit her." Hannibal hummed.

 

"Yes. That is a fitting name. She is shy?" It was a question asking for permission. Permission to give her those decadent treats no doubt.

 

"For now. I'd wait to introduce her to you."

 

More silence. Only the sound of panting as two of the smaller dogs played with each other, bouncing around in a circle.

 

"Coffee?" Will offered, standing and stretching his arms above his head with a yawn.

 

"Why not."

 

Hannibal didn't move, surveying the yard as Will moved to the front door. Will opened the door and paused, smiling to himself and lowering his head to chuckle quietly. That got Hannibal's attention.

 

"What I meant to say was... would you like to come in?" Hannibal understood his mistake and smiled. He stood.

 

"I would, thank you."

  
  
  



	2. Sunday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quinn is settling in well. Will and Hannibal are becoming inseparable.

The daffodils were all bent down to the ground and bruised from heavy rainfall.

Spring was supposed to be full of flowers blooming, birds singing, and a fresh start. Spring was supposed to be a lot of things that it wasn’t this year. At least not so far. Will looked out the window at rain-soaked earth and a gray sky. His eyes heavy from too little sleep and his hands gripped tight around a cup of coffee. It was the only sensation he could feel. The mug was soothingly warm to the touch and the room was chilled. He fidgeted his sock feet together and focused on the warmth the friction caused, shutting his eyes. He was startled back to reality by a cold dog nose nudging his exposed elbow. He was unsure how much time had passed. It could’ve been a minute or an hour. He sipped his coffee and gave the Border Collie at his side a pat on the head. Coffee was luke-warm. He estimated he’d been in his subconscious for a half hour.

 

“Morning Quinn. Are you hungry?” Her tail wagged shyly behind her, hanging low. He nodded to himself and took a larger gulp of his drink.

 

“Yeah, I think you are.” He set down the mug, stretched in all directions, and made his way to the kitchen. After pouring each dog a bowl of kibble he grated some carrot, cracked an egg and threw some leftover shredded chicken on top of each, then gave it a stir. While doing so he remembered he’d fried some bacon and forgotten the pan on the stove. A minute on medium heat and the bacon grease was melted again. He could hear the patter of excited dog feet behind him, lingering behind the linoleum flooring of the kitchen. They all knew they weren’t supposed to enter. Quinn had learned fast, just by observing the others.

 

“You’re all getting a special treat today.” He told them, dribbling a little bacon grease into each bowl. In pairs of two, he set the bowls into different corners of the living room, knowing who got along with who. Quinn still ate alone by the fridge, overly protective of her food. Will didn’t tolerate unnecessary growling in his house. He heard the little terrier, Lance, grumble to himself as chewing and he responded accordingly.

 

“No drama.” He said, wagging his finger. Lance lowered his head back to his bowl and was quiet after that. Will smiled to himself, noticing that he was feeling less numb by the minute. His dogs always grounded him.

 

He heard a car in the distance on the highway, a mile or so out from his road. For a split second, he wished it was a visitor. He thought that was odd and took a moment to think why he’d never wished that before. Not anybody, he thought. Maybe Alana. Or… Hannibal Lecter. He sighed at himself and picked up his phone from the kitchen counter, leaning against it. Two missed calls from Jack and one unread message from the doctor’s emergency cell phone, the one Hannibal gave to his patients if he thought they’d need to reach him outside of office hours. Silly offer in the first place, considering that he reacted negatively to them if they actually called the number.

 

_ So he can text.  _ Will thought to himself, amused. He opened up the conversation to find a short paragraph that was unnecessarily formal. It read the following:

 

**Good morning, William.**

**I imagine you will receive this message, later on, seeing as we discussed previously that both of us prefer to sleep past 9. I am awake uncomfortably early and the morning is quiet and dark. I have work to do before the sun comes up fully. A product of unfortunate timing, all to take advantage of certain opportunities the early morning provides. Despite this, I find myself exceptionally lacking in your company after spending my Saturday with you. Might you be interested, I would greatly enjoy spending my Sunday with you as well. If I don’t hear back from you before midday, I will assume that Uncle Jack stole away your weekend. That would be most unpleasant for both of us. I know how demanding he can be. Someone ought to teach him what it means to be entitled. Have a wonderful morning. I look forward to hearing from you. - Hannibal Lecter**

 

The timestamp read 5:25 AM and for some reason or another, Will didn’t find that odd. Doctor Lecter did indeed prefer to sleep late and the message was incredibly cryptic. It was full of insinuations, secrecy, all wrapped up in an oddly professional tone. But, none of this bothered Will as much as the implication that Jack Crawford had that strong of a hold on Will’s personal life to drown him in work on a Sunday. Then Will realized that Hannibal had most certainly intended to rile him up with that. And that historically, he was right. Manipulation tactics that were unnecessary, but Hannibal used as crutches to keep Will close to him. Will let a heavy sigh escape him.

 

He sent Jack a short text that read:

**Saw you called. I’m busy today. I’ll see you at work on Monday.**

It took some mustering of courage to hit send.

 

Then he sent Hannibal:

**Sounds great to me. Am I going to Baltimore or can you make the drive? Anything you have in mind, I’m interested.**

**P.S. "exceptionally lacking in your company" is a funny way of saying you miss me.**

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not even going to apologize, because I would be lying if I said I'm sorry for not including Saturday. It is meant to be ambiguous. What happened on Saturday? What happens next? 
> 
> Stay tuned.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm so glad you all are enjoying reading this as much as I'm enjoying writing it. What started out as a little one-shot has begun to evolve. 
> 
> Thank you for following along with the story and for your comments! <3


End file.
